ST. LOUIS – The legend of Kenny Agostino grew so large, it eclipsed his 6-foot frame by the time he graduated high school in 2010.

It reached its peak when he scored 50 goals in a season for Delbarton as a senior. The two-time New Jersey Player of the Year became the prestigious program’s all-time leading scorer with 261 points and was drafted by the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2010 before heading off to Yale.

Fittingly, the Flanders native is now a New Jersey Devil, having been claimed off waivers by his hometown team on Monday afternoon.

“It’s a special opportunity,” Agostino said Tuesday at Enterprise Center before the Devils started a three-game road trip against the St. Louis Blues. “I think everything is still sinking in. It’s exciting. To play for my hometown team is really special.”

New Jersey Devils Kenny Agostino slams St. Louis Blues' Robert Bortuzzo (41) into the boards as he chases the puck in the first period of an NHL hockey game, Tuesday, Feb. 12, 2019, in St. Louis.(Photo: Tom Gannam, AP)

While many in Morris County will say they saw this coming when he was a varsity star, longtime coach Bruce Shatel can say he saw it coming even before he scored four goals against Johnny Gaudreau in a playoff game.

Shatel saw it when Agostino was about a foot shorter and 80 pounds lighter.

“When he came in as a freshman he was about 5-foot and 120 pounds,” Shatel told NorthJersey.com and USA TODAY NETWORK New Jersey. “He was undersized, but even at 5-foot he was a strong little guy. He was able to win a spot on our team as a freshman because of his hockey IQ and his decision-making and all of that good stuff that makes you a good player, even though he did not have the physical traits of a varsity player yet in terms of the size and the speed and all of that.”

There were times when Shatel was forced to sit his freshman winger because the level of physicality was too high and Agostino was just too small.

“But even as a freshman he was dynamic,” the 21-year coach said.

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Delbarton's Kenny Agostino was the 2009-10 All Daily Record Hockey Player of the Year.(Photo: Bob Karp/Daily Record)

The growth spurt finally hit around his sophomore year. Agostino gained weight, made the varsity team, and his prolific offensive career officially began. Put on a line with his longtime friend Mike Ambrosio, a former Princeton forward who has participated in a few Devils’ development camps, the two terrorized the Gordon Conference.

“They were unstoppable,” Shatel said. “No matter if it was playing together for the New Jersey Colonials or playing together for Delbarton when they were 16. The other coaches just feared both of them together. But Kenny, in particular, was so gifted at always making a difference in the game.”

Just two days before helping Yale win a national championship, the Penguins traded his rights to the Calgary Flames, which briefly put him in the same organization as his high school opponent, Gaudreau.

But while the speedy Flames’ center quickly rose to become a star in the NHL, Agostino never quite found his fit.

Agostino was able to find success in the AHL, but has yet to stick in the NHL. He was named the AHL MVP after an 83-point season with the Chicago Wolves in 2016-17 as a member of the Blues organization, but his production dropped off in the Bruins’ organization the following year.

Chicago right wing Kenny Agostino, a Delbarton grad from Flanders, was named to the AHL All-Star Team.(Photo: Ross Dettman/Chicago Wolves)

The once-prolific point producer knew he needed to adapt to a bottom-six role in order to remain in the game.

“You’ve got to figure what to do to hang around,” Agostino said. “I learned to simplify and create momentum in the offensive zone, not take as many high-risk plays and be defensively responsible. It’s what allowed me to stay in the lineup with Montreal."

Agostino took to the role, playing a career-high 36 NHL games for Montreal with two goals and nine assists.

Buffalo Sabres' Casey Mittelstadt is checked into the boards by Montreal Canadiens' Kenny Agostino during the second period of an NHL hockey game Thursday, Nov. 8, 2018, in Montreal. (Paul Chiasson/The Canadian Press via AP)(Photo: The Associated Press)

“Sometimes you can come in as a college player or a junior player and you’re counted on to be a top-six forward or an offensive producer, but then you get to the NHL and you have to find a way to get a role for yourself,” Devils coach John Hynes said. “Part of that is being responsible with and without the puck, using his speed and his size to his advantage and being a difficult player to play against. Things that don’t always necessarily show up on the scoresheet.”

On a team like the Devils, Agostino's skills may be better suited for a bottom-six role. He's not a great skater, but offensive upside is still there. What he really needs to show is his work ethic on the ice.

“I watch every one of his games and that’s the one knock,” Shatel said. “I tease him about it. He’s never been a pretty skater. His skating isn’t the prettiest thing he’s got going for him. Kenny gives it everything he has.”

Shatel and Agostino remain close. They spend time together every summer down the shore playing golf. After all these years, Shatel continues to rib him about being a lefty (he’s admittedly not a big fan of Phil Mickelson) but is always happy when he beats the lefty.

New Jersey Devils' Pavel Zacha, left, celebrates with teammates Kenny Agostino, center, and Nick Lappin, right, after scoring a goal in the first period of an NHL hockey game against the St. Louis Blues, Tuesday, Feb. 12, 2019, in St. Louis.(Photo: Tom Gannam, AP)

He says Agostino is a thoughtful, selfless person on and off the ice. He always asks about Shatel’s daughter. He passed on a work ethic to his younger twin brothers, who also played for Shatel at Delbarton. Shatel wants to see Agostino break through and become a full-time NHL player, but what will it take?

“You’ve got to be really talented, but what people don’t always factor in is the next component,” Shatel said. “You have to be lucky and you have to get your break."

Maybe Agostino’s big break will finally come in the place where it all started: At home.